Emergency Orthodontist — Derry & Hudson, NH

Toothache

Is a Toothache an Emergency? Throughout your orthodontic treatment, you may experience some soreness from your teeth moving that feels similar to a toothache. This is to be expected, but there are a few symptoms you should keep an eye out for, including pain when biting down, discoloration on the problematic tooth, and a pimple-like bump on your gums. These are signs that an untreated dental problem could be the cause, so don’t wait to schedule an appointment.

How You Should Handle Toothaches To help alleviate your discomfort, don’t eat anything extremely hard or crunchy, like raw nuts, tortilla chips, or thin pizza crust. You can also place a cold compress against the outside of your cheek to reduce puffiness while temporarily numbing the area. And, if nothing else works, you can take an OTC pain reliever as instructed as a short-term solution.

Additional tip: if you need to sleep between now and your appointment, make sure to keep your head elevated. This will prevent blood from rushing to the area, causing an uncomfortable, throbbing pain.

Loose Bracket or Wire

Is a Loose Bracket or Wire an Emergency? In short, yes! A loose bracket or wire can negatively impact your orthodontic treatment by causing your teeth to shift into a different position. Plus, there is always the added risk that you accidentally bite down on the part of your braces that is out of place, which can result in serious damage to your teeth. Simply put, don’t wait to call us if one of your brackets or wires becomes loose.

How You Should Handle a Loose Bracket or Wire We recommend first trying to move the loose bracket or wire back into position. However, if it doesn’t move back into place with gentle pressure, don’t force it. This can damage your braces and (even worse) your teeth or gums. In that case, simply use some orthodontic wax to cover it and protect the soft tissue in your mouth from injury.

Note: if your bracket or a piece of the wire came off entirely, then store it in a small, clean container and bring it with you to your appointment.

Broken Bracket or Wire

Is a Broken Bracket or Wire an Emergency? Both your brackets and your wires play a crucial role in straightening your teeth. So, if either of them breaks, it’s important to call our Derry or Hudson orthodontic team right away. The sooner you do, the sooner we can get your treatment back on-track and prevent additional damage.

How You Should Handle a Broken Bracket or Wire Although it can be tempting to try and fix this orthodontic issue from home, the best thing to do is simply call us and schedule an appointment. That way, your teeth and gums aren’t damaged in the process and your teeth-straightening journey isn’t negatively impacted in any way. Again, if you have the broken bracket or wire, then store it in a small, clean container for safekeeping.

Poking Wire

Is a Poking or Protruding Wire an Emergency? Yes, especially since there’s a good chance that your gums, lips, or cheeks can sustain a serious cut if the wire isn’t put back into place in a timely manner. In other words, we recommend calling us right away, even if the wire is only slightly out of place.

How You Should Handle A Poking or Protruding Wire First, try using a Q-tip or a clean pencil eraser to gently guide the wire back into the proper position. If that doesn’t work, then place some orthodontic wax (or sugar-free gum, if you don’t have it) over the sharp edge and call our team right away.

Mouth Sores

Are Mouth Sores or Irritation an Emergency? Mouth sores are pretty common with braces, especially towards the beginning of your orthodontic treatment. The good news is that there are several ways to prevent them and, when they do surface, they don’t typically require an emergency visit.

How You Should Handle Mouth Sores or Irritation Rinsing with warm saltwater, avoiding acidic foods, and using orthodontic wax to cover the nearby brackets and wires will help immensely. If the sores seem to be getting worse instead of better (or aren’t healing at all), then call us ASAP.

Broken Ligature

Is a Broken Ligature an Emergency? Since ligatures (often referred to simply as “rubber bands”) play an essential role in the teeth-straightening process, it is considered an orthodontic emergency when they break. So, don’t hesitate to reach out to our Derry or Hudson office right away for help.

How You Should Handle a Broken Ligature With clean tweezers and a careful hand, you can try to put the ligature back in place. If that doesn’t work – or the rubber band is no longer intact, then schedule an appointment with us so we can replace it and get you back on-track with your treatment plan.

Soft Tissue Cuts

Is a Cut Lip, Cheek, or Tongue an Emergency? Soft tissue injuries are often alarming because of the amount of blood. Fortunately, however, cuts to your lips, cheek, or tongue can usually be handled at home with a few easy steps. That said, don’t hesitate to contact us if you’re unsure what to do!

How You Should Handle a Cut Lip, Cheek, or Tongue First, go to the sink and rinse your mouth gently, but thoroughly, with clean, cool water. Once you can pinpoint where the cut is, use a damp washcloth or gauze to apply pressure. If the bleeding doesn’t stop within 10 minutes, call 911 or head to the ER.

Something Stuck Between the Teeth

Is Having Something Stuck Between the Teeth an Emergency? During your orthodontic treatment, you may notice that food particles get trapped between your teeth relatively easily. Although this can be a bit uncomfortable, it’s normal and, most of the time, you can remedy the situation at home in a few easy steps.

How You Should Handle Something Stuck Between the Teeth First, we recommend dissolving some salt in warm water and rinsing with the solution (this will help loosen the debris and alleviate inflammation). Then, use floss (or a Waterpik, if you have one) to gently clean between your teeth. If that doesn’t do the trick, don’t reach for tweezers, a toothpick, or anything else sharp. Instead, give our Derry or Hudson orthodontic team a call.

Broken or Lost Retainer

Is a Broken/Lost Aligner or Retainer an Emergency? Initially, losing your retainer may not seem like an orthodontic emergency. However, the more time that passes, the higher the chances of orthodontic relapse are (which is the phenomenon where teeth begin to move back into their previously misaligned positions). For that reason, we recommend calling us ASAP. How You Should Handle a Broken or Lost Aligner/Retainer If you lose your retainer, you may start to panic. However, that won’t make finding it any easier. So, do your best to take a few deep breaths. Then, figure out the last place you know you had them, and retrace your steps from there. If you don’t have any luck, call us right away so we can begin the process of having a new one made for you.

Loose Teeth

Are Loose Teeth an Emergency? Normally, adult teeth that are slightly loose warrant an immediate call to your dentist. However, this is to be expected from time to time during the teeth-straightening process. That said, if your teeth feel like they are on the brink of falling out, you shouldn’t hesitate to contact us. Once we know more about your situation and symptoms, we can share the next best steps. How You Should Handle Loose Teeth We mentioned an important to-do above: calling our Derry or Hudson orthodontic office. That way, you get the care you need as soon as possible. Outside of that, avoid doing anything that could make the situation worse, like eating crunchy foods, chewing gum, or wiggling the tooth with your finger.